You Can Still Take ActiontopYour voice is key to stopping the Hartman-Hammond bridge and promoting the citizen-led “Smart Roads: Grand Traverse Region” alternative. Write a letter today to federal decision makers, who have withheld final judgment on the Grand Traverse County Road Commission’s bridge study until they receive additional public comment.

Act fast. The comment period ends March 19, 2001.

The Bridge ProposalWith its Hartman-Hammond bridge proposal, the Grand Traverse County Road Commission would push Garfield Township sprawl into an undisturbed portion of the Boardman River valley. The bridge is the linchpin in a plan to relocate and widen Hartman Road to four or five lanes and connect it to five-lane Hammond Road. The proposal also would widen Three Mile Road between South Airport Road and U.S. 31. The Hartman-Hammond bridge is a key component of one of the routes for the proposed Traverse City Regional Bypass, a 30-mile corridor under consideration since 1990.

The FactsThe county road commission argues the Hartman-Hammond bridge and associated road widenings are the answer to traffic congestion in the Traverse City area. However, the commission’s own draft bridge study:

Reveals that the Hartman-Hammond road and bridge would quickly become the busiest corridor in the region, worse than congested South Airport Road.

Proves that the bridge would make way for even more sprawl south of Traverse City by opening up new land to development.

Proposes to fill wetlands in an exceptional portion of the Boardman River valley.

Ignores the needs of people who walk, bicycle, or rely on public transit.

“Smart Roads”Grand Traverse area residents have developed the “Smart Roads” alternative, which would conserve tax dollars and the environment. The “Smart Roads” proposal remedies traffic problems by widening and connecting the Beitner-Keystone corridor to Hammond Road and fixing the existing Cass Road Bridge. “Smart Roads” would also relieve traffic by improving public transit, providing space for bicycling and walking, and promoting urban growth in already developed areas.

The People Have SpokenIn 1987, Grand Traverse County voters rejected a multimillion-dollar road package that included the Hartman-Hammond bridge among several projects. The Michigan Land Use Institute, the Coalition for Sensible Growth, and hundreds of residents of the Grand Traverse region have vocally opposed the Hartman-Hammond bridge project for many years.

Federal Officials Seek Public CommentRegulators at the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service want more public comment before they approve or reject the county road commission’s bridge study. The deadline is March 19 for citizens to write these agencies about the dangers of the bridge and the promise of “Smart Roads.” The Grand Traverse County Road Commission cannot build the Hartman-Hammond bridge without approval from these and other state and federal agencies.

Take ActionThe Michigan Land Use Institute and Coalition for Sensible Growth urge residents of the Grand Traverse region to make their voices heard.

Write Your Letter Today. Decision makers need to hear from the public in order to fully understand what is at stake if the bridge is built and that better ideas exist, such as the “Smart Roads” alternative. Address and send your letter to both the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. Send a copy to the Grand Traverse County Road Commission for inclusion in the official public record.

ResourcesMLUI Web site. The Michigan Land Use Institute has documented the problems with the road commission’s bridge plan, as well as the related 30-mile bypass the commission envisions. The Institute also helped develop the “Smart Roads: Grand Traverse Region” alternative. Read about “Smart Roads” and refer to the Institute’s research and comments at www.mlui.org.Bridge study. Copies of the final Hartman-Hammond bridge study are available for on-site review at these locations:

Institute and Coalition plan March 8 citizen forum, urge public to comment on Hartman-Hammond bridge study

Benzonia — With the Grand Traverse County Road Commission’s release today of the final Hartman-Hammond bridge study, residents have a vital opportunity to help decide how Northwest Michigan will grow for decades to come. At stake is whether residents and officials will choose to encourage more sprawl and traffic by building the bridge, or whether citizens will decide to protect the region’s natural character by redesigning current roads to function better, improving public transit, and promoting growth in already developed areas.

"Residents of the Grand Traverse Region are still in charge," said Kelly Thayer, transportation project coordinator at the Michigan Land Use Institute. "Simply by writing a letter expressing their concerns about the bridge proposal, citizens can convince federal decision makers that there’s a better way to grow our community."

THE HARTMAN-HAMMOND BRIDGE PROPOSALThe Hartman-Hammond bridge proposal seeks to relocate and widen Hartman Road to four or five lanes and to connect it to five-lane Hammond Road with a bridge through an undisturbed portion of the Boardman River valley. The proposal also would widen Three Mile Road between South Airport Road and U.S. 31. The proposal’s roots reach back almost 15 years. In 1987, Grand Traverse County voters rejected a multimillion-dollar road package that included the Hartman-Hammond bridge among several projects. The Hartman-Hammond bridge is a key component of one of the routes for the proposed Traverse City Regional Bypass, a 30-mile corridor evaluated since 1990.

PUBLIC COMMENT IS VITALThe public has until March 19 to comment on the final bridge study. Regulators at the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service have withheld their final judgment on the study and are waiting for feedback from the public.

Residents should direct letters about the bridge proposal to the Grand Traverse County Road Commission, 3949 Silver Lake Road, Traverse City, MI 49684, and indicate that their letters are meant to be forwarded to the relevant state and federal agencies. Residents can read the study at the Traverse Area District Library or purchase a copy at the road commission, which can be reached by calling 231-922-4848.

The Federal Highway Administration has final say in whether the federal government will approve the bridge. To make its decision, the Federal Highway Administration evaluates feedback from key state and federal agencies, as well as the public.

INSTITUTE AND COALITION PLAN CITIZEN FORUMOn March 8, the Michigan Land Use Institute and the Coalition for Sensible Growth will hold a citizen forum to discuss the shortcomings of the final Hartman-Hammond bridge study and encourage residents to write federal decision makers. The meeting will be held from 7 p.m. to 9 p.m., March 8, at Sabin Elementary School, 2075 Cass Road, south of Traverse City in Garfield Township.

INSTITUTE AND COALITION TO CRITIQUE STUDYThe Institute and the Coalition for Sensible Growth will submit a formal report critiquing the final Hartman-Hammond bridge study to state and federal agencies. The Institute has assembled a team of experts to assist in the review. The Great Lakes Environmental Center in Traverse City will review the threat to wetlands. New Alternatives, Inc., a nationally recognized transportation planning firm in Oak Park, Illinois, will analyze the traffic modeling.

The Institute’s and the Coalition’s critique of the draft bridge study in late 1999 was called "credible and deserving of a response" by the U.S. EPA and resulted in the EPA formally objecting to facets of the study. The EPA later allowed the study to move to the current final stage, while demanding much better work.

FEDERAL AGENCIES REMAIN CONCERNEDLast November, the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service challenged the accuracy and quality of the final Hartman-Hammond bridge study. In a letter to the Lansing office of the Federal Highway Administration, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service echoed concerns raised by the Institute and wrote that the Hartman-Hammond bridge study:

Uses "potentially old and biased" data.

Masks a much larger regional Traverse City Bypass proposal.

"Prematurely dismisses" the citizen-supported "Smart Roads" alternative. A year after the EPA raised similar issues, the Fish and Wildlife Service said the road commission and the Michigan Department of Transportation still have not corrected fundamental problems with their work.

PUBLIC HAS RAISED ISSUES FOR YEARSThe Institute, the Coalition for Sensible Growth, and hundreds of residents of the Grand Traverse Region have vocally opposed the Hartman-Hammond bridge project for many reasons. Objections include the fact that the road commission’s own draft study:

Reveals that the Hartman-Hammond road and bridge would quickly become the busiest in the region, eclipsing congested South Airport Road.

Proves that the bridge proposal is a recipe for even more sprawl south of Traverse City.

Proposes to fill in 5 acres of wetlands in an exceptional portion of the Boardman River valley.

Ignores the needs of people who prefer to or must walk, bicycle, or rely on public transit.

"Smart Roads: Grand Traverse Region"Hundreds of citizens helped designed and support the "Smart Roads: Grand Traverse Region" alternative. "Smart Roads" is a technically competent alternative transportation plan that remedies traffic problems by widening and connecting the Beitner-Keystone corridor to Hammond Road, improving public transit, providing space for bicycling and walking, and promoting urban growth in already developed areas. Rather than building a new, four-lane bridge through an unspoiled stretch of the Boardman River valley, "Smart Roads" proposes to fix the existing Cass Road Bridge, saving tax dollars and the environment. "Smart Roads: Grand Traverse Region" is on the web at:http://www.mlui.org/projects/transport/tcbypass/tcintro.html-->http://www.mlui.org/projects/transport/tcbypass/tcintro.html

About the InstituteThe Michigan Land Use Institute is an independent, nonprofit research, educational, and service organization founded in 1995. More than 2,200 households, businesses, and organizations have joined the Institute in support of its mission to establish an approach to economic development that strengthens communities, enhances opportunity, and protects Michigan's unmatched natural resources.

About the CoalitionThe Coalition for Sensible Growth is a Traverse City-based grassroots organization working to build community support for future development that reduces energy demands, air and water pollution, and the encroachment of paved surfaces, and protects the unique natural features of the Grand Traverse region. The Coalition has taken the lead in developing alternatives to the proposed Traverse City bypass and a new four-lane bridge through the Boardman River valley.